DANVILLE, Va. (WDBJ/US Attorney’s Office) - A Danville business and its owner have agreed to pay $310,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act and the Virginia Fraud Against Taxpayers Act by submitting false bills to Medicare and Medicaid.
Jacob Patterson, 66 of Danville, was a pharmacist who owned and operated Piedmont Infusion Services, a pharmacy-based infusion center that employed nurses and nursing assistants to provide patients with not only compounded prescriptions, but needle and catheter method medications ordered by their physicians, according to the US Attorney’s Office. Piedmont Infusion Services did not employ a physician or “physician extender,” such as a physician’s assistant, to provide patient care, said United States Attorney Christopher R. Kavanaugh.
From 2013 through the beginning of 2018, Patterson and Piedmont Infusion Services “falsely and knowingly billed Medicare and Medicaid for high-level office visits that simply did not occur,” said the US Attorney’s Office. “They consistently and improperly billed for CPT code 99215, which is only appropriate when a physician or other qualified medical professional provides evaluation and management of an established patient who presents problems of moderate to high severity. To be appropriate, the appointment must include at least two of these three key components: a comprehensive history, a comprehensive examination, and/or medical decision-making of high complexity. Patterson and...
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